Bracteantha bracteata. 
xe2x80x98Copperxe2x80x99.
The present invention comprises a new and distinct Bracteantha plant, botanically known as Bracteantha bracteata and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98Copperxe2x80x99.
The new cultivar was developed by the inventor in a controlled breeding program at New South Wales, Australia in March, 1998.
The female (seed) parent of xe2x80x98Copperxe2x80x99 was the cultivar xe2x80x98Nullabor Flamexe2x80x99 (not patented in the United States), characterized by its tall growth habit and numerous red bracts. The male (pollen) parent of xe2x80x98Copperxe2x80x99 was the cultivar xe2x80x98Diamond Headxe2x80x99 (not patented in the United States), characterized by its semi-prostrate habit and low number of yellow bracts. xe2x80x98Copperxe2x80x99 was selected as one of the flowering progeny of the above cross on Aug. 1, 1998.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings, at West Chicago, Ill., has demonstrated that the characteristics of the new cultivar as herein described are firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of such asexual propagation.
It was found that the cultivar of the present invention:
(a) exhibits yellow-orange involucral bracts and yellow disc florets;
(b) forms dark green foliage;
(c) exhibits a good basal branching character; and
(d) exhibits an upright mounded growth habit.
When the new cultivar of the present invention is compared to xe2x80x98Creamxe2x80x99 (disclosed in U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 09/819,340) it is found that the new cultivar has smaller leaves and smaller flowers of a darker orange color. The new cultivar can also be compared to its sibling, xe2x80x98Yellowxe2x80x99 (disclosed in a concurrent patent application). In side-by-side comparisons, the involucral bracts of the new cultivar are more orange than the bracts of xe2x80x98Yellowxe2x80x99.